Customer Service Advisor

Directorate: Adult Social Care & All Age Commissioning

Section: Adult Social Care

Location: Civic Centre

Grade: Level 5 (Subject to Review)

Hours: 37 hours per week

Contract type: x2 Fixed Term contracts until 31st March 2027

This advert is open to both internal and external applicants.

About us:

We are a city of strengths, with a proud heritage and bright future. Working for Stoke-on Trent City Council is more than just a job, it's about making, protecting and improving the services for the local population, reducing inequalities and improving independence for the people who live and work in the city. And that’s where you come in. We are always looking for people of the highest calibre with skills, knowledge and experience to help us deliver our compelling vision.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s diverse and talented workforce is its greatest asset and most valuable resource. The skills, knowledge and experience of our c.4,600 employees are essential to delivering our ambitions and vision for our organisation and Stoke-on-Trent. We want to be an employer that people are proud to work for, and where our staff are supported, developed and rewarded in an inclusive way that helps them to excel and to deliver the high-quality services that our residents need.

Further information on the Council and our directorates

The Role:

We are looking for two dedicated, enthusiastic and self-motivated Customer Service

Advisors (CSAs) to join our strong team of Occupational Therapists, OT Assistants and Support Staff.

The team (Social Care Occupational Therapy Service, SCOTS) assesses people to see if they need equipment or adaptations to their home to allow them to live safely and as independently as possible. Your role in the team will be the first point of contact on our front door, taking the incoming calls and finding out enough details to allow the team to decide who needs our support and who is at the highest risk and needs to be seen quickly. You will need good communication, interpersonal and IT skills, and a good attention to detail, so that you can keep each conversation focussed and capture the key information about each person’s presenting issue and the risks they face because of it.

Full training and support will be given, and you will have ongoing support from Occupational Therapy staff to deal with any queries. You will also have opportunities to learn more about the wider role of the SCOTS team and the posts within it, to support you in career progression within the team.

For more information about the team or to discuss the post, please contact Peter Ball (Service Manager) on 01782 237146.

Key Responsibilities:

Providing customer service by telephone, to take referrals and ensure all information that is required for triage is available

Receiving electronic referrals and screening for what information is required

Arranging immediate supports to reduce risk under guidance from practitioners

Provision of business support to the wider team

About You:

Have good customer service skills, over the phone and electronically

Have good IT skills

Have high level organisational skills

Have in interest in working in social care

What we offer:

A competitive salary based on your skills, experienceand talent

Hybrid and flexible working options

An excellent local authority benefits pension scheme

Professional development through learning opportunities, regular training sessions and apprenticeship and management schemes

Further information on our Rewards and Benefits can be found here

Pre-Employment Checks:

Any offer of employment will be subject to the successful completion of required pre-employment checks. These may include:

Right to Work in the UK

Proof of address

Satisfactory references

Occupational Health Clearance

Evidence of professional qualifications or registrations

DBS check at the appropriate level (if applicable for the role)

The Council will not accept any speculative CVs from employment agencies.

No agency terms and conditions accompanying any such CVs will be accepted by the Council.

Any unsolicited information sent by an employment agency will be treated as the property of the Council.

Please note that if an employee who is currently at risk of redundancy within the organisation applies for this vacancy their application will receive priority. If this happens you will be advised accordingly.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

At Stoke-on-Trent City Council, we believe our strength comes from the diversity of our community, and we want our workforce to reflect that. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and experiences. We understand that some people, especially those from underrepresented or marginalised backgrounds, may hesitate to apply if they don’t meet all the listed requirements. If this role interests you and you think you could be a good fit, we encourage you to apply. We are proud of what makes each of us unique and are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels included, can be themselves, and can succeed together.

To Apply

Please create / log into your account and then click 'apply'. If you have any queries or want an application form in another format, please email recruitment@stoke.gov.uk or call us on 01782 238189.